Identity socialization and construction within the French national rugby union women’s team

Abstract

The goal of this article is to present the output of a study on women who play rugby union at international level. This article aims to uncover the steps in their sport socialization-in rugby among others-and to understand how these women construct their identities. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 players from the French national rugby union women's team. First, the results show that the players have varied sport and rugby socializations. Sport socialization happened at an early age for most of the players, but two different subgroups seem to emerge vis-à-vis rugby socialization: members of the second underwent socialization through their family for many years, while members of the other were not as exposed to rugby. As far as the identity question is concerned, the players present different constructions vis-à-vis social norms. The results show that a majority of women say they do not feel the need to meet social norms said to be feminine, while others want to in order to free themselves from the masculine identity caused by the fact that they play rugby. Lastly, some of the players set limits on this double identity, which is sometimes identified as a constraint.

Disabled sportswomen and gender construction in powerchair football

“…also contributes to a discourse that regards disabled people as ungendered and to the further exclusions of disabled women from sports’ (Apelmo, 2012a). In ‘able-bodied’ sports, women have to stage their femininity in order to assert their athleticism and thus avoid stigmatization (Bohuon, 2008; Joncheray et al, 2014; Mennesson, 2005). In the sphere of disabled sports, research shows that journalists and even institutions evade women’s femininity, which leads to the exclusion of female athletes (Apelmo, 2012b).…”

A Social Identity Approach to Sport Psychology: Principles, Practice, and Prospects

“…For example, a young woman is more likely to define herself as a gymnast (sharing category membership with other gymnasts) if this self-categorization maps on to her understanding of the patterns of Social Identity Approach to Sport 8 similarity and difference between gymnasts and non-gymnasts (e.g., in terms of skills and interests), and if this group has become meaningful to her (e.g., through participation in youth events [26]). For example, this process underpins women rugby players' identity as rugby players [27], and athletes' preferences for individual or team sports [28]. Relatedly, Kopietz and Echterhoff [29] noted that Germans became more willing to embrace their national identity after this had been made fitting and available by Germany's hosting of the FIFA 2006 Soccer World Cup.…”

“…Instead they shape and qualitatively transform psychology through their capacity to be internalized as part of a person's sense of self. In this regard, the self is conceptualized as a context-sensitive process in which self-definition varies as a function of the prevailing social setting [33]-e.g., in the case of women's rugby, so that a player sees herself as an athlete on the field of play, but as a woman off it [27].…”

Physical Preparation in Female Rugby Codes: An Investigation of Current Practices

“…Considering this, practitioners should be cognizant of coaching style (e.g., autonomy-supportive vs. controlling) (Amorose and Anderson-Butcher, 2015 ) and should emphasize building strong rapport and professional relationships with female players. Additionally, a key discussion point identified within female rugby is the gender identity paradox where players may display feminine behaviors while engaged in a physically demanding sport that has been traditionally aligned with masculinity (Joncheray et al, 2016 ). Practitioners should consider how this paradox could affect players willingness to engage in physical preparation programmes due to female athletes' desire to achieve both high performance levels and simultaneously conform to identified feminine behaviors and body type.…”